So a couple weeks ago I went to a folk punk/psychobilly/misc minifestival for local Aussie bands. I enjoyed Like...Alaska, whose EP I'd been listening to that week, although I missed half their set through my own fail. Also missed two of the headliners, I was sort of trying to be in two places at once that day. The other bands were pretty decent as well but I couldn't really tell what they were on about because, PSA: The sound system at the Annandale hotel in Sydney? SHIT. REALLY REALLY SHIT, OH MY GOD.

Also I discovered the phenomenon of "skank circles" while attempting to mosh to Los Capitanos, the one ska band with trumpets in the line-up. (They were hilarious and looked like they were having a lot of fun.) I had never heard of this practice, so I was sort of terrified when everybody around me suddenly started running around in jolly flaily circles. That was certainly an experience.

Possibly my favourite bit was when people from some of the bands did mini acoustic sets in the alley outside the pub. This is because I could actually hear them, lol. Jen Buxton from Like...Alaska turned out to be a) my age, b) covered in tattoos and c) adorable, which was sort of depressing, but it was lovely to hear her sing properly. Also Lindsey from Frenzal Rhomb did one, which was hilarious, all of his songs were about necrophilia or black-market baby profits.

@Labyrinthine: PICK IT UP PICK IT UP PICK IT UP! I'm a true blue ska-kid, and skaking is a wonderful thing.

I've got tickets to see Big D and The Kids Table, MUSE, and Florence + the machine all within the next month and a half. Looking forward to MUSE, and Florence, and going to Big D mainly for the dancing.

@Ebullientsoul, I saw Fucked Up! and Pissed Jeans last winter and it was one of the more fun shows I've ever been to. I only stood on the periphery of the crazy moshers ('cuz I like pushing people and I'd had a bad day) and I still left with hand-shaped bruises.

Pitchfork kids didn't know how to react. Hardcore kids jumped off whatever they could, went for mic shares. Magnificent time. Opener was terrible.

YES! and who was the opener? FU is weird...since they are playing to a wider crowd than just HC kids now, it seems that about half the bands they play with are absolute garbage, while other times its with like SEX/VID or SALVATION and other rad bands.

Best small venue show: Toots and the Maytals (c 1997) in a small bar, maybe 500 capacity. Toots took the stage and informed us that that night he would be our teacher and we would be his students. He then proceeded to run down his platinum and gold, evoking at turns Bob Marley, Otis Redding and James Brown. He did soulful roots reggae, some more modern dance hall stuff, country roads, 54-46, Monkey Man and did about 45 solid minutes of the God Father of Soul routine where someone leads him off stage but he runs back on for yet another chorus. He tore the roof off the motha' and everyone there that night got advanced degrees.

Best virtuoso: David Grisman just about any time I've seen him play -- a bit of a bluegrass diva if there is such a thing, but an amazing talent.

This was my second time seeing Fucked Up, the first time being the secret show during the Pitchfork festival last year. I'd go into more hardcore v. indie antagonism, but I think I was a little too bitchy and precious in the previous post. Instead, positivity: Fucked Up is unique and sprawling in a way that somehow makes sense within the constraints of the genre. They've got great songs getting played to a wider audience. I'm excited about that and I hope more kids get into it, with more stage diving and kids hugging and singing along with Damian.

Also: Fucked Up has a song on the new GZA record and is doing a split with NOFX, according to Damian, in person, so who knows how true that is.

So I have now been to a Rock Festival! Melbourne Soundwave, it was pretty great! Insane hot, but I anticipated this and wore a bra that would not be awkward if I had to take my shirt off. What I did not anticipate was getting the flu the day before I flew to melbourne :/ I then infected all my friends and it was generally sniffly and ridiculous. Still rocked out though! I have been bizarrely mesmerised by AFI. I never particularly loved their music and still don't, just not a vocal style I like, but GODDAMMIT their live shows are great!

And I got to see Placebo and the Weakerthans <3 some of my favourites. Also The Creepshow, which is a little Canadian psychobilly band I quite like.

This whole month is gonna be big for concerts:7th- They Might Be Giants w/ Jonathan Coulton15th- Foxy Shazam w/ Look What I Did25th- Ideamen and Polkadot Cadaver(!!! I've never seen any Dog Fashion Disco-related performances, so I'm excited)29th- Allofher Twitch (the fella's project, FINALLY w/ a full live band instead of piped-in backing tracks)

@Brittanica, you won't be disappointed in Polkadot Cadaver! I used to live near the Baltimore/DC area, and I would see DFD at least once a month, and they never put on a bad show. The two times i've seen Polkadot, they've done a DFD set after the regular set as well.

Last night I saw Pavement's first gig together in 10 years. It was amazing. Malkmus had destroyed his voice, he fell over a bit, Spiral Stairs guitar sounded like it was trying to violate Steve Albini for the first few songs. They played for two hours. One of my ears is still fucked. It blew my mind. Pixies next week. I am a lucky prick.

Meshuggah gig last night. Good gig, but not great. Meshuggah wern't as intense on-stage as I had hoped, and didn't do an encore (as far as I am aware - they better not have!), but the music was good, as was the pit: hot, sweaty, aggressive. Came out drenched in sweat with some energy worked off. Nice. Was also introduced to an NZ band, Fornax Chemica, who play a pretty sweet brand of instrumental post-rock/metal.

the next two months are CRAZY with all the bands coming through for SXSW and then CHAOS...the last two days of this month bring DEAN DIRG from germany (whom ive been wanting to see for years) and DOOMRIDERS with RED SPARROWES (whom i dont really like, but hey, its down the street from my house at a place that serves bbq)

Man, oh man TMBG was awesome. Flood, now backwards, and w/ strobes and live drums and lots of confetti and extra verses and audience sing-alongs and bright lights and sock puppet interludes and a huge wave of fake blood (not available in Nashville).AND I got to sing along w/ "RE: Your Brains".